Baseball Talk Philadelphia

April 21, 2015

Phillies left-hander Cliff Lee could be approaching the end of his baseball career, thanks to elbow issues. While Lee gives it one more shot to try to rehab his arm through rest, Lee must be looking ahead to an imminent end of his career. Or at least, his Phillies career. According to a report, Lee has put his Philadelphia home up for sale.

Yesterday, Lee put his 4,166-square-foot home at 1706 Rittenhouse Square on the market for $6.9 million. Public records show that Lee purchased the home in January 2011 – after signing his second contract with the Phillies – for $4.85 million.

Per the listing, the condo has three bedrooms and three bathrooms, with 24-hour concierge services, an indoor pool, fitness center, and two-automated garage parking spaces. It features a gourmet eat-in kitchen, master suite with walk-in closet and marble bathroom, plus a large terrace with a view of the city skyline.

As I've mentioned before, the condo is also home to one of the more fascinating auto garages:

March 09, 2015

In 2012, the Phillies pulled starter Cliff Lee back on waivers after the Los Angeles Dodgers put a claim in on Lee. In 2013, trade rumors surrounded the Phillies ace, but the Phillies did not pursue any trade opportunity for Lee. By 2014, Lee was dealing with injury and made the fewest number of starts of his professional career since he was a rookie with the Cleveland Indians in 2003. As the Phillies look at the Cliff Lee situation, trading Cole Hamels seems more and more imperative.

“It’s mild,” Lee said of the discomfort he felt in his elbow Friday. “But, it’s just concerning because I knew what it turned into last year. … It’s what it felt like at the start of when I started feeling it last year.”

An MRI exam on Saturday revealed swelling in Lee’s elbow in the area of the injury he suffered last year. The results of the MRI are getting a second look from James Andrews, a renowned orthopedic surgeon.

Lee is hoping that he won’t need surgery.

“It would be six to eight months out,” he said. “So basically if I have the surgery, this season will be done — and possibly my career, I guess. I don't know. We'll have to see.”

“Yeah,” he said. “I’m getting up there in age. I’m 35 years old now and when this contract’s over I plan on going home, so I’m running out of opportunities. All I can control is what I can control, and I’m going to do everything I can to help us win. That’s all I know how to do.”

Even if Lee skips the surgery, continued discomfort may be a reality going forward.

As for Cole Hamels, the Phillies appear ready to begin dealing. After telling reporters all offseason that it was "unlikely" that Hamels would be traded, Amaro took the odd step of announcing to reporters including Salisbury that a team had "stepped up" efforts to acquire Hamels. Not coincidentally, a report that morning from Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe said that the Yankees "came closest" to acquiring Hamels.

Translation: Boston Red Sox, make your best offer, because the Phillies may deal soon.

The Phillies have not announced any starters beyond Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez taking the hill on Tuesday in Clearwater. Might the Phillies be looking at themselves in the mirror right now, asking themselves, "Could Cole Hamels be the next injury?" The Phillies may have to swallow hard and take the best offers out there for their ace, while they can get something. For Cliff Lee's $120 million, they may have gotten next to nothing in return.

July 31, 2014

For once Jonathan Papelbon may have said the right thing. Instead of suggesting he go play for a contender and that he didn't join the Phillies for "this", Papelbon offered a positive comment today when appraoched by reporters. The Phillies made no moves on the July 31 trade deadline.

One must wonder what the Phillies players are thinking right now. They must know that they are not good enough. They probably enjoy each other's company; they may even be too comfortable. They may all get to get to stay together for some time.

One who took exception to this was Ashley Papelbon, who denied that Papelbon was out late and insisted that he was with her in bed. Mrs. Papelbon responded to a fan asking if they were out with Jacoby Ellsbury's family.

Then, Macho Row had a couple tweets from Ant Scaramuzzi, who protects his tweets.

Whoa. Eskin and Papelbon just got into a heated verbal argument by the Phils dugout. Both had to be restrained.

March 11, 2014

Yesterday, the Phillies continued there funk and lost to the Braves. The Phillies were looking to rebound today when they traveled to Orlando to face the Braves. David Buchanan took the ball in his third game of the spring. Buchanan is looking to make a run at the 5th slot in the rotation. Buchanan faced off against rising star Julio Teheran who went 3-1 with a 1.04 ERA in six games for the Braves last season.

The Game: For the first three innings, David Buchanan gave up one hit and one walk in a pitching duel with Julio Teheran. Sean O’Sullivan came in the fourth in relief. O’Sullivan got a quick 123 inning including a strike out of Evan Gattis.

In fifth inning, O’Sullivan and the Phillies began to fall apart. To start the inning, Dan Uggla hit bomb to left field. Andrelton Simmons followed with a double. Lucky, Jordan Schafer popped into a double play. Christian Bethancourt ended the threat when he grounded out to second. 1-0 Braves

In the sixth, the Braves were back at it. After a single by Jason Heyward, Edward Salcedo hit a homer to left, plating both runs. After two outs, Jose Constanza and Dan Uggla both singled to put runners on first and second. Andrelton Simmons hit a single to plate Constanza. Jordan Schafer followed by hitting a triple to hit plate two more runs and ending O’Sulivan’s day. Kyle Simon came in and struck out Christian Bethancourt to end the inning. 6-0 Braves

In the top of the sixth, finally got their first run and hit of the game.Tony Gwynn walked to lead off the inning. With one out, Marlon Byrd walked to put runners on first and second. Ryan Howard struck out for the second out, but Kevin Frandsen got the Phillies first hit and plated Gwynn. Domonic Brown popped out to end the inning. 6-1 Braves

In the eighth inning, Jake Diekman came in out of the pen. Evan Gattis would hit ground rule double to lead of the inning. Jose Constanza grounded out for the first out but moved Gattis up to third. Phillip Gosselin followed with a single to right scoring Gattis. With two outs, Todd Cunningham came to the plate and took Diekman deep for a homer to end the scoring for the afternoon.9-1 Braves

Other Phillies pitcher making an appearance in the game was Bastardo who pitched a clean frame.

Some notable offensive performances:

Kevin Frandsen 1-3, 1 RBI

Reid Brignac 1-1

Impact: The Phillies bats appear to be as cold as ice. In the last three games, they have ten hits and six of them were in one game. If the Phillies want to win games this season, they are going to have to hit the ball. The pitching hasn’t been the greatest but most days it’s been enough to win games. The one bright spot was David Buchanan who looks to be these years J.A. Happ/Vance Worley/Tyler Cloyd.

Up Next: The Phillies travel to Ed Smith Stadium to face the Orioles. The Phillies will send A.J. Burnett to the hill for his third start of the spring. Burnett is looking to hit fewer batters and get into regular season form. He will be opposed Ubaldo Jimenez making his second start of the spring as the Orioles signed him after camp had begun.

Andrew Shipotofsky is writer for Philliedelphia. Follow him on Twitter @AShipotofsky

December 07, 2013

The Phillies are once again hoping to shop Jonathan Papelbon. They may have traded Papelbon last season, but his rough stretch happened to come at the weeks leading up to the trade deadline. But, in this trade market of inflation and only so-so closers available, the Phillies may have an opportunity to trade Papelbon.

Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports tweeted yesterday that the Phillies are trying:

The question is, of course, could the Phillies find a suitor? I think so.

The Detroit Tigers signed an older Joe Nathan to close for them for two years, $20 million. Papelbon is due two years, $26 million. A $13 million option could vest. A team may not want to pay the whole thing, but the Phillies could kick in some money to bring the cost to an acquiring team to about what Nathan is getting from Detroit. Nathan just turned 39. Having Papelbon is no more risky than Nathan would be.

Further, would a team spend $9 -11 million a year for Grant Balfour when they could get Papelbon for around $10 million? Balfour is 36 years old; Papelbon just turned 33. Two years of Papelbon (and a third if he is good) could be a lot better for a team.

Does it make sense? No. Chase Utley is not moving to third base. They tried that twice and gave up on it twice. Besides, third base is the ONE position they have with young players that possibly could join the major league roster. I think that Phillips is worth more than Papelbon, though. If somehow they could work that out, the Phillies would have no trouble trading Phillips to another team. Unless Phillips is willing to forgo his gold glove second base abilities to play center field, that won't happen.

The Reds could use Papelbon, should they (stupidly, in my opinion) move Chapman to the starting rotation. The Reds have a rotation spot that Bronson Arroyo once occupied and could fill that spot that way. But with a rotation of Homer Bailey, Johnny Cueto, Mat Latos, Mike Leake, and Tony Cingrani, there really does not appear to be a spot in the rotation for Chapman, unless the Reds were to trade Bailey, a free agent to be.

The Texas Rangers let Joe Nathan depart as a free agent and currently have no one designated to be the team's closer. Neftali Feliz once held down that job, but was moved to the starting rotation after he couldn't close the door in the World Series one out away from a World Championship...twice. Feliz, coming off of Tommy John surgery, would be an interesting trade for Papelbon. The Phillies could use him in the rotation or the bullpen.

If Papelbon is traded, who closes? Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez is the closer-type. Currently penciled into the starting rotation, he may fit best in the bullpen as a closer. He could be the Phillies' closer for the duration of his three-year deal, while a live arm such as Jake Diekman could also close. Clearing much of Papelbon's salary could give the team some options down the road.

September 28, 2013

Cliff Lee pitched one heck of a September. Hidden by a putrid offensive output from Phillies batters, Lee compiled a 1.85 ERA and struck out 54 batters while walking just one hitter. Lee has a 3-2 record this month to show for it. A little offense, Lee could have put together another one of his famous perfect months that he has compiled for the Phillies in the past. Any contender would have loved to have Lee this month.

But reflecting on his last start of the year last night to Todd Zolecki, Lee pondered his future, even going as far as to suggest that he could retire after the contract ends.

“I’m 35 years old now and when this contract’s over I plan on going home, so I’m running out of opportunities. All I can control is what I can control, and I’m going to do everything I can to help us win. That’s all I know how to do.”

“Right now I don’t,” he said. “There are a lot of things that can happen between now and then, but I just know that my kids are 12 and 10 and I’ve basically missed the first half of their lives. I’m financially able to shut it down, so … that’s how I feel right now. But when the time comes I might look at it differently. I also want to finish being good, not struggling and fumbling through at the end. I want to finish strong and take it to the house. Next year I want to win a World Series, then another one, then another one and take it to the house. That’s what I’m wanting to do.”

Lee's contract has two guaranteed years remaining. The Phillies hold an option for the third, but that would become guaranteed, should he pitch a combined 400 innings in 2014 and 2015, or 200 innings in 2015 alone. A 2014 and/or a 2015 that equaled this season would be more than enough to vest that option, and if Lee was pitching this well, the Phillies would have no problem giving it to him.

Of course, much could happen between now and then. Roy Halladay, only a year older than Lee, finished a dominant 2011 with similar contract clauses. At the time it seemed pretty likely that Halladay could achieve those.

Lee's desire for a World Series should equal that of the Phillies' front office, or they should consider letting him go. The Phillies had a 2013 payroll that was $12.5 million less than 2012. Would spending that $12.5 million on a different player? Maybe, maybe not. Looking to 2014, the Phillies have about $50-55 million to fill out a roster beyond those already signed. The Phillies need multiple offensive upgrades, two starting pitchers and a bullpen for that money. The Phillies will have to make some decisions that may not be easy or even popular if they wish to contend in 2013.

That could mean, letting a popular player go in favor of a more productive player. Take Ben Revere. Revere had a productive June and very productive July after a rough start. Fans really like Revere's personality and he is a nice piece to have on a team. That is, unless there is a better option. As older players slide, the production must be made up by others. A "good player" may not be good enough to overcome a Jimmy Rollins who posted batting averages the last five years that are well-below his All Star seasons. And Rollins isn't going anywhere.

Could Lee walk away? Maybe. It's easy to say in 2013 what you hope to do in 2016. Having seen Lee in cities on the road with his family alongside him, his commitment to family is clear. With a son in remission for Leukemia, Lee knows all too well about how evanescent life can be. Lee will indeed have plenty of money to retire with and spend time with his family. The Phillies' World Series chances are one thing, but family cannot be taken for granted.

July 05, 2013

In an ESPN Baseball Tonight podcast from last night hosted by Buster Olney, baseball writer Jayson Stark indicated that the Phillies, despite people's claims that General Manager Ruben Amaro, Jr. is "delusional", the Phillies are getting ready to start selling players. In the last few days, Amaro has started to indicate that he could be selling, and for good reason: the Phillies are 8.5 games out of first place in the National League East and also 8.5 games out of what would be the second wild card spot.

And when you look at the Phillies' place in the standings, Stark says the Phillies are "getting ready to sell...gearing up to sell". Simply put, there is no reason to believe the Phillies have what it takes to go on a streak that would help them make up serious ground. And despite some people's thoughts (including my own) that Amaro is in some sort of denial, Stark thinks Amaro is ready to sell:

"I think that people who have been concluding that Ruben is deluding himself or misleading himself, are reading him wrong. He was just committed to waiting as long as possible and we're about two weeks away from seeing the Phillies being one of the most interesting sellers in baseball".

For this to happen, both Olney and Stark believe that Amaro and Utley would have to have some sort of heart to heart meeting to discuss the possibility first. Much of what happens will come down to Utley's desires.

"They need to know what Chase is thinking on a number of fronts, first of all contract. He's a free agent after this year and I know he's told people he thinks, the way he's playing right now...he thinks he can play four or five more years.... I just don't see the Phillies committing for that length".

Utley is a fan favorite and means so much to the history of the Philadelphia Phillies.

"I get the sense they're torn on this...they've got guys who can play second base and they have people in the organization saying that it's time to move on, it's time to move him."

Stark notes just how loyal Philadelphia Phillies President Dave Montgomery is and Utley would be a player for whom the team has much affection. I do think that there is precedent in how fans would deal with that emotional attachment.

In 1997 the Phillies were in the first legs of turning the team over to the Scott Rolens and Mike Lieberthals in the system. Darren Daulton was not the player he used to be, but still played with such determination and impact. The Phillies traded the life-long Phillie to the Florida Marlins for outfield prospect Billy McMillon. Phillies fans rooted for Daulton the whole way until he earned a World Series Championship with the Marlins.

Of course, back in 1997 we all pretty much knew that Daulton would likely retire at season's end and there will be more to an Utley trade than pure emotion. Utley is still a valuable player who would net the Phillies a first round draft pick at the end of the season if he signs elsewhere as a free agent. With the Dodgers reportedly willing to go three years, $45 million, we know that a one-year qualifying offer would dwarf the money he would get. The Phillies would need to get a return in trade someone's equivalent to a first round pick and something else.

That trade may be hard to do. Utley could finish the season and go out with a bang like Pat Burrell in 2008. But if the Phillies get a decent return, we can root for Utley to win a World Series and be happy for him like Darren Daulton.